Saradha Scam: Bengal Court Rejects IPS Officer Rajeev Kumar's Anticipatory Bail Plea

In a setback to former Kolkata police commissioner Rajeev Kumar, the Alipore District and Sessions court on Saturday rejected his anticipatory bail plea. Kumar, who is evading CBI summons in connection with the Saradha chit fund scam case, had filed the bail plea on Friday, a day after a city court had said that the CBI did not need a warrant to arrest him in the Saradha case.

Kumar, who is currently the ADG of the CID, had failed to get a relief from the Barasat district and sessions court on his anticipatory bail application in the case.

The CBI had moved the Alipore court on Thursday, seeking an arrest warrant against the former city police commissioner.

The additional chief judicial magistrate had disposed of the CBI's application, saying that the agency did not need an arrest warrant as the Supreme Court and the Calcutta High Court had already lifted the bar on his arrest in the case.

Meanwhile, the probe agency has summoned his private secretary Shuvam Banerjee, his two personal security guards and a private travel agent to know about the whereabouts of the illusive cop. Teams of the special crime branch of CBI also visited the office of the CID at Bhabani Bhavan as well as various parts of the city in his search.

Kumar has been incommunicado since Friday following his 17 days leave from September 9.

Sources said the CBI sleuths reached a private hospital in South 24 Parganas district to trace the former Kolkata police commissioner. Kumar is alleged to have suppressed evidence crucial for the investigation into the scam.

The team of CBI officials had on Friday gone to the official residence of Kumar on Park Street and another to a resort in South 24 Parganas to trace him.

Last week, the DG of West Bengal police apprised CBI that Kumar was on leave from September 9 to 25.

The Saradha group of companies allegedly duped lakhs of people of Rs 2500 crore promising higher rates of return on their investments.

Kumar is accused of tampering with crucial evidence in the Saradha chit fund case. He headed a special investigation team set up to investigate the deposit default scam before the Supreme Court handed over the case to in 2014.